Lock device for compartment doors



Nov. 30, 1948. E. N. JAcoBl y LOCK DEVICE FOR COVPAl'TP/IENT` DOORS Filed April 6, 1'945 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' Nov. 30, 1948. E. N. JAcoBl LOCK DEVICE FOR COMPARTMENT DOORS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 `Filed April 6. 1945 Patented Nov. 3Q, 1948 srArrs Aram orties 13 Claims.

This invention relates to locks and has particular reference to door latch locks designed for use on the glove compartment doors.' of automobiles such as the lock of Patent No. 2,208,003, issued to Edward N. Jacobi, July 16, 1940.

Lock devices like that shown and described ,in the aforementioned patent" operate satisfactorily only when. the door hinge along the edge of the door opposite the lock is kept as closeas possible t the frontA of the door so that the surfaces of the latch bolt and the striker or keeper plate which engage to maintain the door latchin a closed position lie nearly radial with' respect to the door hinge.

Obviously, some variation' in the disposition of these engaging surfaces with respectlt'o'the hinge is permissible vbut if these engaging surfaceslie inra' plane passing too far forwardly ofthe hinge axis the door'is capable of being sprung open by force or accidentally as a result of Vibration when the same is supposed to bein a `closed locked position.

In recent glove compartmentdesigns the' tend; en'cy is to locate the cl'oor'hinge` at' a considerable distance rearwardly ofthe front plane of the door, or interiorly of the compartment so that the lower portions of the door swing par'- tially beneath the glove compartment upon being opened. The advantage orfmc'il'lntin'gI the'hinge rearwardly of the front of the doorinthis manner is that the door in fully open position extends less distance into the passenger space at the front seat of the vehicle.

A locking bolt such as' that shownv and described in the aforesaid patent to Edward" N.

Jacobi is obviously unsuitable for use with a compartment construction wherein the' hinge is lo-v cated wel'lback ofthe front'plan'e ofthe door for the reason that a line drawn from the hinge axis through the engaging surfaces of the lock i.

con and the' keeper ferme an angle' with said Surfaces which, though less than 90, is still greater than desired for positive' latchih'g of' the door iny closed? position- It is an object of the present invention; therefore, to providea lock device for glove comparte ment doors which' have their hinges` located a distance rearwardlyof the front plane of the door and in which the engag'ing?surfacesl of the latch bolt and the striker plate' lie"l in a plane passing close to' or radially" of the hinge' axis of the door so as to assure' 'proper latching action.

More specifically, it i'sian object ofthisinvention to provide a lock device 4for the doorsof glove (':mbartmeflts Wl'ielrl the dof'hi'g'e' lies' Well rearwardly of the front plane of the door char'- acterized b`y` a latch bolt pivotally carried by` aforward portion ofthe lock mechanism with its striker plate engaging portion extending reari-l wardly therefrom towardk the rear of the compartment and provided with a surface substartially radial to the door hinge axiswhentheblt is in an operativeprojected position.

Another' object of this invention resides vin the provision of a novel latch boltconstruction for compartment door locks' of the character de scribed.

With the above and other objects-in' view which will appear as the description lproceeds, this invention resides in the novel construction, combination and a'rra'rigenientv of parts substantially as hereinafter described, and more particularly defined by the appended claims, it being understood that such changes in the precise embodiment of the hereindisclosed invention may be made as come within the scope of the claims.

The accompanying drawings illustrate two complete examples of the physical embodiments of the invention lconstructed in accordance with the best modesso far devised for the practical ap plifcation of the principles thereof, and in which:

Figure 1 is a cross sectional view through the door of a glove compartment illustrating the lockin'g latchiof this invention applied thereto;

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the lock of Figure 1 but having parts thereof broken away to better illustrate the operation of the latch bolt; l

Figure 3 is a. side elevational view similar to Figures 1 and 2 and illustrating the manner of retracting.' the latch bolt; l

Figure 4 is ay perspective view of the lock device, of this invention and Figure 5 is a perspective viewofa slightly modied form of latch bolt for the lock of this invention.

Referring more particularly to the accompanying drawings in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the numeral 5 designates-thedoor of an glove compartment 6 only the front' portion of- Whichhas-been shown in Figure 1.

The doorfis supportedfon the hinge 'l located near the bottom wall-Bof the glove compartment vbut spaced a substantial distance inwardly from the front plane-of the door sothat the lower. portion of the door swings beneath the bottom wall 'offthe'glovelcompartmet uponibeing opened.l The glove compartment has a top wall; 9 adjacent to-tfhev upper 'tree edge ofthe"` door andisecure'd to the top-wall. 9 of. the compartment is a striker plate I having a latch bolt engaging surface II located a distance inwardly of the door and projecting down into the compartment on an angle such that the surface II is substantially radial to the axis of the hinge 1.

A latch bolt I2 carried by the lock device i3 of this invention engages behind the striker plate portion II to secure the compartment door closed,

The lock device I3 comprises a casing I4 the front end of which projects through an enlarged 'l aperture i5 in the door to be positioned in the interior of a hollow molding strip I6 secured longitudinally along the upper free edge of the door at the front thereof. This molding strip thus forms part of the door, and bosses I1 extended rearwardly therefrom to lie at opposite sides of the casing provide for securing the lock device to the door. This is accomplished by screws I8 passing through diametrically opposite ears I9 on the sides of the casing and threading into the 4bosses I1 as indicated in Figure 2l.y

The internal details of the lock of this invention-arethe same as shown and described in the aforementioned patent to Edward N. Jacobi No. 2,208,003 and hence will be only briefly described herein. Y

It is sufficient to note that the casing has a bore extending longitudinally thereof and opening to the front of the casing to slidably and rotatably receive a key operated lock cylinder 2l. The casing is also provided with a longitudinal rib 22 extending along the top of the casing for the full length thereof and through which a radial slot `23 communicating `with the casing bore opens to the top side of the casing.

The sides of the slot 23 are grooved to provide opposed-channel shaped casing sections, the open sides of which face one another and which terminate as at 24 near the rear of the lock casing. i

These channels receivetrunnions 255r projecting from the opposite sides of a latch bolt operating lever 26 to pivotally mount the lever at the inner ends or bottom of the channels. The lever 26 has a downwardly extended leg 2l cooperable with the rear end of the lock cylinder by which the lever may be rocked upon its trunnicns upon depression of the lookrcylinder into its bore, and the lever is biased to a position with its leg 2`l engaging the rear of thelock cylinder by a compression spring 28 confined between it and the rear portion 29 of the upper wall of the casing. The opposite leg 30 of the lever projects upwardly through the slot 23 toward the door.

The latch bolt I2 of ,this invention has a generally U-shaped stirrup-like configuration as best shown in Figures 4 and 5 andincludes spaced apart opposite side arms 32 joined at their rearward ends by a bit 33 extending between the arms. The ends of the arms remote from the bit have a pivotal connection 34 with the lock casing at the forward end thereof with the pivot axis normal to the casing boreand positioned forwardly of the front plane of thedoor so as to lie between the door and the molding strip. Y The side arms of the bolt arespaced apart a distance such as to embrace the rib 22 and extend rearwardly along the top of the casing so as to position the bit portion 33 of the bolt rearwardly of the back end of the casing when the bolt is retracted to an inoperative position such as 'shown in Figure 3. n

Actuation of the bolt to its inoperative retracted position and biasing thereof to vits keeper engaging projected position is accomplished in a 'novel manner. by means of the lever 25.

- L yieldingly holding For this purpose a yoke 35 is secured to the arm 30 of the lever adjacent to its free end which projects upwardly through the slot in the rib, and this yoke comprises a medial attaching portion 3S by which the yoke is secured to the lever arm, and opposite side arms 37 extending outwardly from the attaching portion towards the side arms 32 of the-latch-bolt.

The arms of the yoke have sufficient length as to Span the width of the rib 22 and are bent downwardly as at 38 to lie along the outer sides of the rib between it and the bolt arms. The portions 38 of the yoke lie substantially parallel to the side arms 32 of the latch bolt and have trunnion-like drivers 39 bent outwardly therefrom for engagement in slots Q0 cut into the side arms 32' of the latch bolt so that swinging motion of the lever about its trunnions 25 is translated into pivotal motion of the latch bolt to enable retraction from and projection of the bolt to its operative keeper engaging position.

The biasing force of the compression spring 28 acting on the leg 2'! of the lever is, therefore, translated into a biasing force on the latch bolt the same in projected position engaged behind the striker plate to thereby hold the door latched closed.

The front of the lock cylinder 2| projects through a suitable opening `in the molding strip so as to be accessible at the front of the door, andinward-depression of the lock cylinder into the casing bore, as illustrated in Figure 3, causes the lever to swing in a counterclockwise direction as shown in Figure 2, which' motion is translated into pivotal retracting motion of the latch bolt to disengage its bit 43? from behind the striker plate surface I I.

Attention is directed to the fact that the surfaceM on the bit which atwise engages with the striker plate surface II lies in a plane substantially radial to the hinge axis 'i when the bolt is in projected position and the angle of the engaging surfaces of the bit and striker plate thus precludes accidental displacement of the latch bolt from behind the striker plate by reason of vibration during operation of the vehicle, or displacement by forcing of the door when the same is locked closed.

The latchA bolt itself is of novel construction and the bolt illustrated in Figures 1 to 4, inclusive, is shown as a stamping cut and formed from a single blank of sheet metal. With this construction, it will be noted that the bit is integrally joined to the rear ends of the side arms 32 of the bolt by means of an inclined cam surface 42 on the side of the bit opposite the arms and which has the keeper engaging surface 4I of the bit bent downwardly therefrom at an acute angle so as to lie between and face the side arms 32. The surface 42 thus acts to cam the bolt past the striker plate against the action of the spring 28 biasing the bolt to projected position upon closing the door. Camming cf the latch bolt past the striker plate takes place although the lock cylinder may be in a locked position by reason of the novel manner of mounting the actuating lever 26 in the casing I4.

It is also possible to construct the latch bolt as shown in Figure 5, wherein the arms 32 are made as identical stampings and the bit 33 is comprised of a die casting having a substantially triangular cross section to provide the inclined cam surface 42' and the keeper engaging surface 4I',

With this construction the bit has opposite dowels 45 y projecting from its ends.l and'. received in holes'iiprovided in the. arms; These dowelsfv cooperate with they rivet il passing through alignedholes in the arm and the bit in assern'f` b'lyingv the bolt toassure proper dispositionV of the' arms relative to the strikerplate engaging sur-v face' 4l ofthe bit;

From the foregoingv description taken in con nection with the accompanying drawings, it'will befV readily apparent to those skilled in the art or'pivotal motion on an axis parallel to the latch` bolt pivot axis and near the rear of the'lockbody; ay motion transmitting connection between the lever and the lock bolt such that pivotal motion of. th'e lever in opposite directions is translated into pivotal motion of the latch bolt to carry the same to and from an operative position atwhich.

the closed end of the bolt engages behind a striker plate on the compartment; a spring re'- acting between the lock body and' the. bolt for yieldingly holding the latch bolt'in: an operative projected position; and means on the lock bodyA operable through said lever for moving the latch' bolt to a retracted inoperative position.

2. A. lock device of the character described",. comprising: a look body; a U-shaped latch` bolt..

having a keeper engaging bit at its closedv end disposed adjacent to the rear` of thelock'body and opposite side arms projecting forwardly therefrom and embracing'a portion of the lockr body; a pivotal connection between the ends of" the arms remote from the bit and the forward end of the lock body by which the bit endof the:

bolt may be swung toward the rear oft the lock body to an inoperative retracted position to unlatch the door; a lever pivotally carried bythe lock body; a connection between the lever andy said lock boltthrough which the bolt moved to an inoperative retracted position upon pivotal motion of the lever in one direction; anda. lock` cylinder slidable in the lock body and operableVv through said lever upon inward endwise motion; of the lock cylinder to move the lockbolt to itsy inoperative retracted position.

3; A lock device of the character described,

comprising: a casing having a` bore opening toA its forward end and opening to one side wall through a radial slot; latch bolt; means pivotally mounting the latch boltlfrom the-forward:

endl of the casing with the bolt extending rear wardly along` the casing adjacent to saidislotvandf with the operative striker plate engaging portion ofthe bolt disposed near the rear end` of. the casing; a lever p-ivotally mounted on the casing with an end portion thereof projecting through said slottoward the latch bolt andl with an opposite end portion projecting' into the bore of'. the casing; a connection between said. endiof: the;lever andthe latch bolt by whichpivotal motiorp of the'.A lever in. one: direction. is;y translated into pivotal motion. of the latch bolttfromritsrop'- erative' projected position'.` to.v an inoperative re` tracted position; spring means.` reacting. between;

61'. the' casin g5 andfthc l ever: for'rn'aintainingthelatch. boltl in its operative projected position; and a,

depressible actuator slidable inthe bore. of.' the' casingwith its inner end'i engageable with said opposite endportion of the'levert'o effect pivotal motion thereof iny said. direction' upondepression comprising: a casing having a bore opening toy one end andhaving'a rib extending longitudinallyalong the exterior ofA its side wall, said bore'A opening to the sideoithe' casing through a' radial slot in'. said rib;v a U-shaped` latch bolt havingr spaced apart side arms embracing said rib and of a length atleast as great as that of the casing so that the closed keeper engaging portion of the bolt' is disposed behind'the casing in the retracted position of the bolt; a pivotal connection between theV opposite extremities of the side arms andthe' casing at thel forward end of the casingr with thepivot axis lying transversely of the rib; a lever pivotally mounted in the casing with one leg projecting through the' radial opening to lie between the side arms of the bolt and having. another leg projecting into the bore of the casing; a motion transmitting connection between the lever'v and the latch bolt including a yoke on said leg of the lever having opposite arms spanningy the spacesbetween the lever and the side arms of the latch bolt. at opposite sides of the leven; the arms of the. yoke being bent to embrace the rib and so as to lie between the bolt arms and the rib, andv drivers'on the extremities of said yoke arms engageable-in slots cut into the arms of the bolt so that pivotal motion of the lever imparts pivotal motionr to the latch bolt; a spring reacting between the casing and said' other leg of the lever: for yieldingly holding the latch bolt in an operative position with its closed end projected' away from the casing; and a` keycontrolled loclrfcylinder. slidably mounted in the bore of. the casing and engageable with said other leg of' the lever upon depression of' the cylinder, into they casing for eiecting retraction.

of. the latch. bolt to an inoperative position through' said` lever;

5. A substantially U-shaped latch bolt for compartment locks having a casing xedto the door' of the compartment, comprising: spaced apart stamped,I arms providing the sides of the U-shaped bolt; a die cast bit secured between said'armsat one extremity thereof and providing the closed endzof the. bolt; a keeper engaging' surfaceon the side of the bit facing said arms andilying ina planesubstantially perpendicular to.' t'heilength of the arms; a cam surface on the opposite' side. of saidl bit connecting with the keeper engaging surface at; an acute angle; andA means' at thetfree extremities of the' arms providingfor-pivotally attaching the bolt to the casing.

6. Ai substantially U-shaped latch :bolt for compartment door locksA oi" the type having aI ca'singixed to thecompartment door, said latch bolt-.1 comprising: a. stamping'cut from a singleV blanktofsheet' metal and bent. to provide stra-ight substantially parallel opposite side arms forming t'hesides-,othe Urshapedr bolt, and a bit at the closed; end: of.' the U-shaped bolt, said bity in.m cludirrg an inclined cann portion integrally joined to'. the=extrernities ofi'tlie side" arms, and a keeper` engaging portionibentinwardly atan acute angle from.. said camA portionl so'y as'. tov lie.: between the arms at the side of the bit adjacent to thefree" extremities ofthe arms; and means at the opposite ends of the side arms providing for pivotally attaching the bolt to the lock casing.

'7. In a lock device for compartments having a door closing the open front of the compartment and mounted from a bottom portion of the cornpartment for swinging motion on a horizontal axis spaced rearwardly a distance from the front plane of the door, said door having a hollowvmolding strip on its outside face along the free edge of' the door: a'lock casing having a bore opening to its forward end; meansproviding for securing the lock casing to the back of the molding strip with the casing projecting into the interior of the compartment through a hole in the door; a latch bolt mounted on the casing for pivotal motion about an axis normal to the axis of the casing bore and directly adjacent to the front of the casing so that the pivot axis lies between the molding strip and the front face of the door and so that the latch bolt projects rearwardly of the casing through said hole in the door and into the interior of the compartment; means biasing the rear portion of the latch bolt away from the casing to an operative keeper engaging position including a lever connected with the latch bolt and pivotally carried by the casing at the rear portion thereof, pivotal motion of the lever in one direction eiiecting retraction of the latch bolt from its operative keeper engaging position; a keeper engaging surface on the rear of said latch bolt substantially radial to the door hinge axis with the bolt in operative projected position; and a key operable lock cylinder rotatable and slidable in the casing bore and having its front end projecting through the fro-nt face of the molding strip for imparting pivotal motion to the lever in said direction upon depression of the lock cylinder into the casing bore so as to effect retraction of the lock bolt from its operative keeper engaging position.

8. A lock device of the character described, comprising: a casing having a bore opening to its forward end and opening to one side wall through a substantially radial slot; a latch bolt;

means pivotally mounting the latch bolt from the forward end of the casing with the bolt extending rearwardly along the casing adjacent to said slot and with the striker Iplate engaging portion of the bolt disposed near the rear end of the casing; means biasing the latch bolt to an operative projected position with its operative striker plate engaging portion spaced from the side of the casing; a depressible actuator slidable in the bore of the casing; and means for translating depresl sion of the actuator into the casing bore into pivotal retracting motion of the latch bolt to carry the striker plate engaging portion of the bolt to an inoperative position adjacent to the rear end of the casing.

9. A lock device of the character described, comprising; a lock body having a bore opening to the front thereof; a U-shaped latch bolt having a keeper engaging bit at `its closed end and opposite side arms embracing a portion of the lock body; a pivotal connection between the ends of the arms remote from the bit and the front end of the lock body; a push button slidable in the bore of the lock body; and a motion transmitting connection between the push button and the latch bolt for translating endwise motion of the push button inwardly of the lock .body into arcuate motion of the `latch bolt to carry the same away from an operative keeper engaging position.

ii (l 10: A lock device for compartment doors, comprising: a lock body extending rearwardly from the front of the door; a latch bolt pivoted at one end on an axis fixed with respect to the lock body and adjacent to the front of the door for arcuate motion of its rear end behind the door toward and from the rear of the lock body, said bolt having a keeper engaging portion at the rear thereof cooperable with a striker plate to latch the door closed when the bolt is in a position projected away from the lock body; a sliding button in the lock body accessible from the front of the door; and a motion transmitting connection between the button and the latch bolt including a part actuated by the button and connecting with the bolt intermediate its ends and substantially on a line leading from the keeper engaging portion of the bolt through the pivot axis of the bolt for translating sliding motion of the button into latch bolt disengaging motion.

11. A lock device for compartment doors, comprising: a lock casing extending rearwardly from the front of the door; a latch bolt pivoted at one end on an axis xed with respect to the lock casing and adjacent to the front of the door for arcuate motion of its rear end behind the door toward and from the rear of the lock casing, said bolt having a keeper engaging part at the rear thereof cooperable with a striker plate to latch the door closed when the bolt is in a position projected away from the lock casing; a sliding button guided in the lock casing and accessible from the front of the door; a motion transmitting member actuated by the button for connecting the latch bolt with the sliding button, said motion transmitting member working through an opening in the casing wall; and a connection between said motion transmitting member and the latch bolt at a point on the bolt intermediate its ends and substantially on a line leading from said keeper engaging part through the pivot axis of the bolt by which the motion transmitting element is operable to translate sliding motion of the button into latch bolt disengaging motion.

12. A lock device of the character described comprising: a lock body having a bore opening to the front thereof; an elongated latch bolt pivotally connected to the body at its forward end and having its rear free end adjacent to the rear end of the body and adapted to enga-ge a fixed keeper, said bolt having an aperture opening to the side of the bolt facing the body; a push button slidable in the bore of the lock body; and a motion transmitting connection between the push button and the latch bolt for translating endwise motion of the push button toward the rear of the lock body into swinging motion of the latch bolt away from an operative keeper engaging position and toward the lock body, said motion transmitting connection including a .part movably carried by the lock body and extending into said aperture in the latch bolt for connection with the bolt.

13. In a lock device for a compartment door; a lock body having a bore opening to the front thereof; a mounting lug on the side of said lock body, spaced intermediate the ends thereof, and adapted to cooperate with the body portion of a compartment door to secure the lock body in place thereon with the iront end portion of the lock body projecting forwardly through a hole in the door and the rear portion of the body extending rearwardly of said portion of the door into the compartment closed by the door; a latch bolt pivoted at one end from a portion of the lock body ahead of said mounting lug for arcuate motion of its free end toward and from the rear of the lock body, said latch bolt extending rearwardly from its pivot alongside the lock body and being adapted to project through said hole in the door to have its rear portion cooperable with a Xed striker plate mounted on a wall of the compartment; a push button slid- .able in the bore of said body; and a lever connecting said push button with the latch bolt, whereby depression of the push button effects swinging of the bolt toward the lock body to retract the latch bolt from an operative keeper engaging position.

' EDWARD N. JACOBI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 435,109 Woodcock Aug. 26, 1890 2,126,141 Saunders Aug. 9, 1938 2,138,251 Lindstrom et al. Nov. 29, 1938 2,172,586 Jacobi Sept. 12, 1939 2,301,282 Jacobi 1 Nov. 10, 1942 2,331,115 Fox Oct. 5, 1943 

